The Peel Regional Police Fraud Bureau Warns Public of Popular Instagram Scam

Peel – The Peel Regional Police Fraud Bureau would like to warn the public of an ongoing fraud that is a form of an advanced fee scam using the popular social media medium Instagram. Based on reported incidents, it would appear that youth in particular are vulnerable to this scam.

Police have received reports from citizens who have allowed an Instagram user to access their own personal Instagram account to advertise the sale of electronics such as cell phones. Other users of Instagram seeing these posts on their friends’ accounts assume the source must be legitimate and are falling victim to a fraudulent sale, paying for goods that will never be received.

How to protect yourself:

Never allow a stranger to access your personal social media accounts.

Choose strong passwords for all online accounts.

Maintain the strongest privacy settings available.

Do not make online purchases from unverified and unknown sources.

Always ask yourself – Is this too good to be true?

Do not click on any links from unverified sources.

To learn more about this type of scam and other fraud scams currently affecting Canadians, please visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website at www.antifraudcentre.ca